On December 10, Meishan's first radar satellite, "Dongpo Eye (DP-15)," was successfully launched aboard the Lijian-1 carrier rocket from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in China, entering its designated orbit. This milestone establishes Meishan as the first city in Southwest China to integrate both optical and radar capabilities in a commercial satellite constellation.
The "Dongpo Eye (DP-15)" is a self-developed commercial X-band phased-array radar imaging satellite by an enterprise in the Sichuan Tianfu New Area Meishan region. It achieves multiple technological breakthroughs, featuring a stackable flat-panel design and an advanced synthetic aperture radar (SAR) payload. Unlike traditional optical satellites, it offers sub-meter ultra-high-resolution imaging, a maximum swath width of 150 kilometers, and core advantages such as cloud-penetrating observation, day-night imaging, and precise identification. Free from light and weather constraints, it can detect millimeter-level displacements in mountains, buildings, and bridges, providing critical data for geological disaster warnings.
In 2022, the company completed the first phase of its "Huantian Constellation" with 10 high-resolution optical satellites. Soon, nine more satellites will be launched in batches to achieve the first-phase goal of 20 satellites in orbit, enabling a combined "optical + radar" revisit cycle of 4.9 hours. According to Zou Yunkun, Chairman of Huantian Smart Technology Co., Ltd., upon completing the third-phase deployment of 86 satellites, the company will achieve global coverage every two days with all-weather monitoring capabilities.
In recent years, the Sichuan Tianfu New Area Meishan region has seized strategic opportunities in commercial aerospace and the Chengdu-Chongqing economic zone, actively expanding satellite applications. It promotes satellite remote sensing in high-standard farmland management, disaster prevention, resource surveys, environmental protection, and smart city development. The region has established the Western China Satellite Industrial Park, accelerating the construction of an integrated "space-air-ground" industrial ecosystem and striving to build a national benchmark for commercial aerospace—the "Tianfu Satellite City."
(Photo provided by interviewee)
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